Zzyzx Web Camera

Here are a few stills and time-lapse movies from the USGS web cam here at Zzyzx, capturing some interesting weather events. The camera is mounted on a tower and pointed SSE across a portion of Soda (dry) Lake and the Devil's Playground. This camera uploads to the web, and images can be viewed at http://www.eldesierto.org/Zzyzx_DustCam.html. Images refresh every 6-15 minutes (depending on the needs of the project). The wind generator on the left will indicate wind direction. Note that, during strong winds, the tail bends to control rotor speed, so always use the tail alignment to judge wind direction, not which way the rotor is facing.

This camera is part of a study to monitor dust emissions and surface change in the Mojave, which in turn is part of a larger effort to understand these processes in the arid Southwest and elsewhere: http://esp.cr.usgs.gov/info/sw/